Fourth Dementia - Bourbon Barrel-Aged | Kuhnhenn Brewing Company

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Notes / Commercial Description:
This is our 4th Dementia Olde Ale that has been bourbon barrel-aged. This ale has an intense sweet caramel malt flavor and aroma that develops into a toffee and toasted marshmallow-like character.

More User Reviews:

Pours a fairly dark brown, basically opaque, with a small quarter inch head, and basically no lacing.

Smells just incredible, I can't even describe most of it. Dark fruits, caramel, toasted marshallow, toffee, and bourbon.

One of the most interesting beers I've ever had- like I said before, I can't really even describe most of these flavors. Caramel, raisins, figs, toasted marshmallow, oak, vanilla, cola, sarsaparilla, walnuts, bourbon. The aftertaste is this incredible blast of caramel and bourbon- almost like bourbon-soaked Werther's candy or something. This is just so unique and awesome.

This is fairly thick bodied, with a sweet and mucho syrupy mouthfeel, and a very low amount of carbonation. Although I really want to slowly sip this, it's really hard to not just gulp it down, it's so drinkable.

This might be the best beer I've ever had. While drinking it, I honestly had no idea what was going on.

2012 Vintage:
Pours a rich, viscous amber, syrupy in color/appearance. Thin tan head forms with a vigorous pour but dissipates immediately leaving just a trace of a collar. English toffee, burnt sugar, toasted marshmallow, vanilla, oak, and coconut all peak through in the aroma with just the slightest hint of booze. All of these sweet, luscious smells come out in full force in the taste. Incredible depth and richness of flavors; the barrels are prominent but not dominating, instead balancing and complimenting the massive caramel sweetness/toast/oakey vanilla tannins/leather. Once the sweetness begins to drop, you're hit with huge sweet cherries/dates/dark fruit and a lingering hint of booze. Sticky lacing is left clinging to the glass. Mouth feel is full-bodied, sweet, syrupy, but the carbonation level is perfect to move this sweet malt bomb around the palate. Overall, it easily ranks as one of my absolute favorite Old Ales, it's simply fantastic and dangerously quaffable.

Serving: 12 oz. bottle poured into a Founder's CBS snifter. No bottled on date, but this is 2015 vintage, so maybe 2-3 months old at this point.

A: Pours a syrupy-thick, mahogany-brown color. Just a hand-full of bubbles in a very calm beer. Some light getting through.

S: Apricot, fig, maple syrup, plum, dark cherries, vanilla. The bourbon is very faint on first pass, but a good whiff reveals it. Comes through as a more oaky, leathery note, and less wet, fresh bourbon.

T: Big fig, jam, plum, and caramel notes up front. Some vanilla and toffee in the middle. Finish leaves more of a slightly booze-tinged character than an overt bourbon note, but lets you know that there's some barrel presence there.

M: Just brilliant. This is about as thick and chewy as you'd want for a barrel-aged beer, regardless of the style. The high-ABV is well hidden. Carbonation level is right in the sweet spot.

O: Kuhnhenn is my hometown brewery, as I grew up a short 15 minutes away. However, I didn't discover it's place in the craft beer universe until 1 or 2 years in. A very small, unique place, Kuhnhenn has a similar ethos to Founder's in that they do it their way. After my first Winter Solstice in 2012, it instantly became one of my favorites. BB4D is a legend, and 3 years later, it still holds up as a classic. This beer, for the style, has it all. It's rich, sweet, decadent, layered, and above all delicious. It's truly an achievement to craft a beer this drinkable and tasty. My only small critique is that I would like a bit more barrel presence here. Not sure if it was more predominant a few years back, but it's just a tad mute here. Maybe I'd have to have it side by side with 4D to truly appreciate it, but bourbon isn't the first thing that comes to my mind when drinking this one. Nonetheless, it's an under-the-radar beer that deserves a bit more acclaim than it already has.

Recommendation: Mandatory drinking for lovers of all things barrel-aged.

On-tap at Kuhnhenn, also a few times out of the bottle. Pours an opaque, sienna-brown color with a dark-beige, creamy head that smokes out pretty quickly and is kind of hard to bring back, even with aggressive swirling.

The aroma is powerful right from the start, and only grows more so as the beer warms up. The bourbon barrel aging is apparent immediately, thanks to the heavy boozy-oak notes. Light vanilla, candied, booze-soaked dark fruits, and an intense sweetness build up the rest of the aroma. There's a nice clash between the dry warmth from the bourbon barrels and the savory sweetness of the malt.

This one is very creamy as it hits the palate, with a body on the thicker side and a medium amount of carbonation. Bourbon infused fruits up front; dates, figs, ripe raisins. Toasted brown sugar charges through and sweetens things up a bit, as well. Along with the brown sugar comes a delicate vanilla flavor that lasts into the aftertaste. Oak and bourbon flavors are hanging in the background from start to finish - although the word "background" may not do them justice, as they play a much larger role in the flavor.

The taste has the same head-butting of flavors as the nose did aromas - a nice, smooth, mellow boozy warmth with a dry oak underbody competes with a delicate and delectable sweetness in the form of toasted, sugar-coated dark fruit. Booze is, as mentioned, very apparent - but in a "flavor" kind of way, rather than a "burning" kind of way - although it's additional warmth should be noted.

At 13.5% ABV, this beer is no slouch, and it deserves to be slowly sipped. Heavy oak, bourbon, sugar, dark fruits, and vanilla make for a nicely executed barrel-aged old ale. There's a reason people rave about this stuff. It's great.

2012 vintage. Poured into a Courvoisier tumbler. Appearance is a slightly cloudy Burnt Sienna color. Not even a hint of head on this one. Wonderful bourbon aroma with notes of caramel, vanilla, dried figs and chocolate. Flavor is heavy on bourbon but not overwhelming. Full bodied with only a slight carbonation. Long finish. Perfectly balanced.

Smell consists of bourbon vanilla notes. It smells somewhat sweet but not overwhelmingly so. Also apparent are notes of toffee, oak and dried dark fruits including raisins.

Tastes of vanilla, chocolate raisins and figs. I also get a bit of chocolate chip cookie that is fantastic. Alcohol is somewhat apparent, but is not at all overbearing. A bit of breadiness. Wonderfully complex assortment of flavors that seem to meld together nicely.

Mouthfeel is medium thick and coats the palate nicely. There is a slight warming from the alcohol.

Overall, this is a sipper in the best sense of the term. There is so much flavor in each sip, it is best enjoyed a small amount at a time. This is one of the better examples of barrel aging really improving a beer, as I thought the regular 4th D was good, but nowhere near this enjoyable.